SasuSaku Month 2019
by 7team7
Summary: Entries for SasuSaku Month 2019, mostly fluff. Ratings K-M.
1. Chapter 1: Home today, home tomorrow

Sakura hadn't seen Sasuke in such a panic in a long, long time. But when your wife's water breaks in the middle of a forest, what are you supposed to do?

Sasuke definitely didn't have the answer to this question. No, no. He had activated his sharingan, as if that would help him in his frantic efforts to think of what to do. Sakura, on the other hand, was as cool as a cucumber. As a medic, she had dealt with the most gruesome of cases, so she was just excited to finally bring their child into the world. It was going to be a happy occasion, as soon as she got out of her very wet clothes.

"Sasuke, we're gonna be parents! It's happening!"

Sasuke's eyes became impossibly larger as he racked his brain for a solution to their current situation. They were at least another two days worth of walking away from Konoha and their baby was clearly not going to wait that long.

He gripped her shoulders, "I know it's happening, but it can't happen _here._ I never planned for this. We're not that far from home, maybe we can make it if I summon a hawk? Sakura, please, we have to move. Why are you smiling? Is this funny to you?"

Sakura simply smiled wider before placing a kiss on Sasuke's nose. "You called Konoha _home. _You haven't done that in a long, long time. It's nice."

"You're going into labor and that's what you're thinking about?"

"Consider it planning for our baby's future?"

* * *

Sarada was crying again. She squirmed in Sakura's arms. Who was in Sasuke's arms.

"I think you can put me down now. We can stop here to feed her."

Sasuke reluctantly put her down, but not without summoning susanoo to cover their little family.

"This is excessive and you know it."

"Hn. We're not that far from home, I'm not taking any chances when we're so close."

"Are you ready to go home? Yes, I think you're ready to meet everyone. Mama and Papa walked so slowly so we could hog you, yes we did," Sakura cooed down at Sarada's head of dark hair.

Sasuke stroked his wife's hair as he watched their daughter, "if Naruto doesn't have the house ready by the time we get there, the village will need a new hokage."

Sakura rolled her eyes. Ever the dramatic one.

But they were all ready to go home. It didn't matter as much since they were all together, but they weren't far now, and Sakura couldn't wait. She glanced up at Sasuke, but couldn't catch his eye since he was gazing fondly at their daughter. She liked to think he was ready to be home too.


	2. Chapter 2: Red Yarn of Fate

A/N: he has two arms in this and idk anything about knitting so pls dont roast me.

* * *

_*tap tap tap, tap tap*_

"Ah, Sasuke-kun, come in. Choose your colors, we're going to try a new pattern today! I'm using blue, pink, and purple. I think they go well together, but you can do anything you want. And don't say black, dark gray, navy. That's boring."

Sasuke hovered by the door of Sakura's office in the hospital, eyeing the pile of yarn reproachfully. "There's nothing else we can do?" he asked as he flexed his new hand habitually. "Not training or something useful? Naruto gets to train."

Sakura rolled her eyes at him, "Naruto decided to get his arm way before you, so he gets to train before you. Now close the door before he comes in and messes with my supplies."

Sasuke stepped fully into her office; he knew better than to disobey Sakura.

"I'll use the same colors as you." After seeing Sakura's questioning expression, he cleared his throat and clarified, "so I can follow you more easily."

Sakura nodded, seeming dejected, but Sasuke didn't push it. She would talk if she wanted to. It didn't take long—after what had to be only a few moments of silently sorting through the yarn, her sparkling smile was back as she teased him, "are you sure it's not because you want to match with me, Sasuke-kun?"

He decided to humor her, "Maybe you can just knit this one for the both of us, but I'm not sure if we're the same size," he picked up her doctor's coat thrown haphazardly on the side of the desk, "do you think I can squeeze?"

First knitting, now jokes? It was plain to see how far gone he was.

But in Sasuke's mind, anything was worth it to hear that laugh.

Even Sakura couldn't quite let go of her smile after using her professional doctor voice to order him around. "I have the pattern on this paper if you want to look at it, but I think I've got it down. Use the blue one first, yeah, like that, then we'll put purple in the middle and red on the other side."

His new arm still felt awkward, so he dropped his knitting needles a few times, but Sakura was nothing if not patient, and waited for him to catch up so they could continue together.

"When did you learn how to knit?" he asked conversationally. The sound of only their knitting needles was starting to grate on him. He expected her to say she learned recently because of increased downtime following the war or something, but she answered quietly, "when you left the village. That first winter was colder than usual and it gave me something to do besides just train and read."

The former rogue fumbled his knitting needles again, but this time Sakura didn't say anything. Maybe in the future he and his arm would slip less.

In the coming months, Sasuke kept up with knitting. He just wanted to spend time with Sakura, really, and this was safe common ground, but she was busy and he didn't want to seem too desperate. His latest creation was a purple and white patterned blanket with the Uchiha symbol in the center. He got distracted by how excited he was to have successfully knitted the Uchiha symbol that he didn't pay much attention to the size. It was smaller than he originally wanted, honestly more fit for their baby than what he was going for: a throw blanket for Sakura to leave on her couch to keep her feet warm.

Wait.

Their baby?

Sasuke knew he was in love with Sakura, had known there was something between them for a long time, but a future with her was something he actively avoided thinking about. He didn't want to get his hopes up, especially when he still had trouble communicating the depth of his feelings, and she surely had other options.

But he _really _liked the sound of "their baby." A baby. Together. With Sakura. He could certainly get used to that.

_*tap tap tap, tap tap*_

His reverie was interrupted by a pattern of knocks on his front door. Only one other person used those knocks to say, "let me in, it's me." It was his secret code with a certain someone, because too many times they were attempting to spend time with each other, just for it to be another member of their former squad coming to bother them. "Let me in, time for a team seven reunion!" just wouldn't cut it anymore, especially not when they saw each other all the time these days. If anyone else, even Naruto or Kakashi—no, especially them—caught him dropping his knitting needles, he might have to kill them. Maybe he could knit a coffin?

He pulled the door open to reveal Sakura, looking very cheery as she held up a bag of food. "I wanted to try this new place by the hospital, but couldn't decide on what to order since it all looked so yummy, so I ended up getting way too much. Share with me?"

He opened the door wider to let her through. As she got herself situated at his kitchen table, he grabbed the blanket to show her.

She ran her hand over the center, feeling the comforting softness of the knit, "the colors...they kind of remind me of susanoo. Nice job, what are you going to do with it?"

Ah. That.

"It's a bit small. I'll probably just save it…"

"Save it? For who though?"

"I don't mean to make you uncomfortable since this is quite forward, but it's baby sized," he waved it around to show how small it really was, "so I was going to save it for a baby. Our baby."

The future mother of his child (oh, he loves the sound of that) blushed deeply, but she was far from feeling uncomfortable. She continued laying out their dinner before adding, "that sounds good to me. It can go with the little baby hat I knit last week."

* * *

A/N: Sasuke knitted something out of husband material


	3. Chapter 3: Dr Uchiha will see you now

Summary: day 3: medicine

Is anyone here a doctor!? No, but we have Sasuke—who has Sakura.

A/N: I hope I was able to capture the other characters well since I tend to just write about *surprise* sasuke and sakura. has this title been used before? i own nothing either way

* * *

The wind felt refreshing against his face as he leapt from tree to tree, but he made a concerted effort to not out run the other ninja on his squad. It was one of Sasuke's first missions on a team since he had returned from his journey, and he knew he had a lot of trust to regain. He was grateful, though, that Kakashi had made a team of people who he could tolerate and he knew were less wary of him than others: Lee, Choji, and Shino.

They had completed their mission successfully and were on the way back to the village when they were attacked by a band of rogues, who quickly learned they chose the wrong group to mess with.

Except Choji was, to put it delicately, as Sasuke had learned was best, a large guy and in the confusion of the ambush he had accidentally knocked Lee over with an expanded body part.

Lee was so high on adrenaline and his flaming power of youth that it didn't bother him at first; he was more excited to really feel the extent of his fellow shinobi's power. But as they kept going at the breakneck speed of seasoned shinobi, he started to feel the full extent of his injuries and eventually faltered behind.

Sasuke was used to being either alone, or only in the presence of team seven, so he was hyper aware of anyone new. The feeling of the team's chakra was almost invasive and he noticed when Lee's chakra seemed different than usual.

"Let's stop here. We should rest and eat something," Sasuke called when they reached a clearing. He knew as well as anyone how it could be embarrassing for a shinobi to be called out for injuries, so he didn't mention how Lee was lagging. But they had hardly stopped to breathe after the ambush, so they could all use a break.

"Lee, I didn't get you too bad with my expansion jutsu right?" Choji asked as they all plopped down in a circle.

"I'm fine! Your strength is really incredible but my sensei has instilled great resolve in me, look!" He attempted to punctuate this by standing up quickly and giving a thumbs up, only to topple over, clearly in pain.

Shino spoke up, "What is it? If it's an injury we should treat it now before we continue, or it'll just slow us down."

Lee looked embarrassed, "I think I will simply need rest when I get to the village. Besides, none of us know medical ninjutsu so I'm not sure what we can do."

Choji thought for a moment, "that is strange, we have a four man squad and no medical ninja."

"To be fair, they don't teach medical ninjutsu in the academy, so there aren't many medical ninja to begin with. And they need all the help they can get at the hospital right now. There's some illness going around the civilian district," Sasuke mumbled as he rummaged in his pouch.

Choji laughed, "can you imagine if they taught us medical ninjutsu at the academy? Naruto would probably kill someone rather than heal someone! He's come such a long way since his academy days."

Lee laughed along with him at the thought of their younger selves trying to heal each other's scrapes on the playground. Iruka would've been at his wits' end. "They say laughter is the best medicine, I feel better already!"

"If that's the case, Sasuke, why have I never seen you sick if you never have the best medicine?" asked Shino very seriously.

Lee was crying from laughter at this point, "oh Shino, perhaps instead of being a ninja you should consider a career as a clown?"

Sasuke held up the small silver tin he had been looking for the entire time. "Ah, I have Sakura."

He opened it and chose a few items he felt would help the team best, "Lee, at least wrap your ankle until we get back. Everyone else, sanitize your wounds. There are bandages in here as well. This balm should help bruises and burns. Since the enemies didn't seem to be using poison we don't have to worry about these syringes." Sasuke hoped everyone could trust him to heal and not kill, he's come such a long way since the war.

Thankfully Lee, kind soul that he was, started crying even harder, "Sasuke you really are a village hero! To be half the shinobi you are would be an honor! I too will be this prepared next time I go on a mission—no! I will be more prepared! I will learn medical ninjutsu!"

As Choji started wiping grime off himself he reminded Lee that he can't use ninjutsu. "Then I will use taijutsu to ensure that none of my comrades get hurt and they will not even require medical attention! Thank you, Sasuke."

Sasuke was uncomfortable to say the least, but thankfully they got back to a topic he could get on board with: Sakura.

"Sasuke, how did you learn about all of this? Does the hospital give you these supplies?"

"Sakura made the kit for me. Just in case."

"The great and beautiful Sakura's kindness knows no bounds! We should all try to be like Sasuke _and _Sakura!"

Yes, thought Sasuke, if everyone was a little more like Sakura, they'd all be a little more tolerable. Good thing he had the real thing waiting for him in Konoha. His injuries weren't major, just a number of small wounds all over his body that would be a bit of a pain to avoid, but Sakura's healing chakra felt so pleasant, he quite looked forward to seeing her at the hospital. Even if she didn't bother using medical ninjutsu on him this time around. She'd given him plenty of medicine, plenty of healing since he returned to the village.

* * *

Sakura was jotting down some notes on her clipboard as Sasuke seated himself for his required post-mission check up. "Did the kit come in handy?"

"Ah," he nodded.

"You're not seriously injured?"

"Ah."

"You still want me to heal you."

"Ah," he gave her a slight smile and tapped his temples. Just his eyes.

Sakura set her clipboard aside and her hands started glowing green as she ran them all over Sasuke's body to check for other injuries. She started softly, "you know I'll always heal you if you ask. It's not a problem."

"I don't want to inconvenience you."

Still speaking quietly, Sakura laughed and moved on to a different section of his body, "I think we both know your presence is more than appreciated. Besides, I'm a medic, this is my job."

"On the mission someone said laughter is the best medicine. I haven't heard that in a long time. My eyes still hurt so clearly it doesn't work. But don't people also ask for a kiss to make it better? Maybe that's what I need."

"In your dreams, Uchiha" she rolled her eyes at him, but the green was brighter than ever, twinkling with joy. Once she got Sasuke all cleaned up she would certainly be giving him a kiss or two.

Or a million.

Who's counting? Certainly not Sakura, she's a doctor with a lot of medicine to distribute to a very sick patient.


	4. Chapter 4: Twinkle Twinkle

Sakura stood in front of their balcony window and surveyed the view from their new high rise apartment and sighed. Neither of them liked having the blinding city lights as their view, they preferred something less..developed. The sprawling lands and green, green trees of Konoha were greatly missed already.

As teenagers, they had enjoyed a great number of stolen moments under the cover of darkness; they would rendezvous behind their houses to sneak off and spend time together. Their first kiss was on a starry night in Sakura's backyard, right before they were interrupted by her sprinklers turning on. Mikoto, ever the proper one, would have had a heart attack if she knew how many times Sasuke ate an unhealthy amount of midnight snacks with Sakura not only after dinner, but after he had already brushed his teeth. Konoha had its charms, that's for sure.

But it couldn't be helped. Both Sasuke and Sakura had to move to the city after landing their respective jobs and while they were glad to be making more than enough money, it came at the price of leaving their cozy hometown.

Sasuke came up behind her and placed a hand on her waist, "it's unsettling, isn't it? Even though it's nighttime, everything is so bright." He looked down at the cars going by, the flashing signs trying to sell him something, the streetlamps revealing pedestrians milling about. Was that sign winking at him? They're going to need to buy blackout curtains.

She nudged him, "that's the point of lights, darling. But I don't like it either. Look, you can't even see the stars."

Sasuke pressed closer to her and craned his head towards the sky. When he was done looking he didn't move away, just brought his mouth close to her ear and whispered, "no, you can't see the stars. But you can still see the moon."

She smiled and twisted in his grip to press a kiss to his lips, "you're right. It's beautiful, isn't it? The lights don't even compare."

Sasuke nodded, stealing another kiss before Sakura could continue speaking, "We'll get used to it here. The lights aren't so bad, now you can't get mad at me for walking home in the dark because it's not even dark. The moon is always there too."

"The perks of signing myself away to a corporate job are that we can use a company car. I'll pick you up. Don't walk in the dark."

"We're not in Konoha anymore, though. The hospital's on the opposite end of where your work building is. The drive on the way there will be boring and lonely without me."

Sasuke rolled his eyes, "I'll manage. The moon will be there. These stupid city lights will be there. And you'll be waiting for me at the end of the journey."

"Sounds like a date to me."

"Sakura, we are married."


	5. Chapter 5: Cotton Candy Sweetness

**A/N: **This is a part 2 to my piece "100% Sweetness" so I highly suggest reading that first! Who can resist a good college au? This is from my American perspective where for some reason they fry everything at festivals/carnivals/etc. I do not endorse this practice though lol

* * *

The day had finally come: they were going to a festival and Naruto could wear his highly anticipated new mesh shirt. Sakura even let him borrow some of her glitter to slather all over. His favorite was orange, so he saved that for the eyes, but went with a dazzling multicolor for his cheeks and chest. He was feeling pretty confident, but come on, mesh shirt and glitter? Who wouldn't feel like they were on fire?

Sasuke, on the other hand, could've enjoyed a perfectly nice night in, but Sakura wanted to go and—yeah, that's about his only incentive to be there. And what a treat it was to see her excitedly hop from stall to stall trying to get her hands on as much fried food as possible. (Sasuke even mused over the possibility of fried boba before realizing that was, without a doubt, taking things too far.)

They watched performances, listened to music, admired art, and haggled with vendors (that mask vendor was a real jerk). Naruto was able to find a reputable ramen stand to satisfy his cravings. They even found their friend Sai, who was running a face and body painting booth. For only a small fee, he painted a beautiful cherry blossom on the back of Sakura's hand. She was so pleased with the result that she insisted Sasuke get something painted too, so he ended up with a snake twisting along his wrist to his inner elbow. Pretty badass in his opinion.

Sasuke tried to win plushie for Sakura by trying his hand at a strongman game, but was completely showed up by Sakura, who hit the hammer so hard, she got the highest score possible on her first try. She insisted her slug plushie of choice was adorable, but Sasuke just couldn't see it. He redeemed himself by winning a squirt gun game and gifting her a huge bag of cotton candy from the prize selection. Sakura really didn't need more sugar in her life, but the color matched her hair, so he couldn't resist.

They strolled along, her fingers growing stickier and her smile growing bigger by the minute. She got through about half the bag before she got distracted by funnel cake.

* * *

"We should go ride the ferris wheel!" Sakura took hold of Sasuke's hand to drag him to the line. They kissed the day after the party, but this was the first time they held hands and somehow the casual intimacy of it overwhelmed Sasuke to a point where he couldn't fight the small smile creeping up on his face. Even when they got to the line, he didn't let go.

There were two lines, so they naturally chose the shorter one. Except it was only after waiting ten minutes did they realize the short line was to get on the passenger cars that swing back and forth, while the longer line was for the ones that stay still. Neither of them were patient people, so they decided to stay put. How bad could it be?

After the first rock back and forth, Sakura mentally scrolls through a list of everything she ate that day and started regretting eating all her treats, but only for a moment because the look on Sasuke's face when he thought she was about to blow chunks all over him was priceless.

The view was pretty sweet too; they were way up high and everyone on the ground looked so small. The sun was starting to set and the sky looked like the cotton candy stuffed away in Sakura's bag. Time must have been frozen when they reached the very top, Sasuke felt like he couldn't breathe. Not because he was scared of heights, but because Sakura had grabbed his hand again without him realizing. He squeezed back.

* * *

Naruto leaned against Sakura, who was leaning against Sasuke, in an attempt to share the view with his best friends. "Naruto, get off," ordered Sasuke gruffly. He and Sakura had found a perfect spot on the lawn to watch the fireworks, and he didn't feel like sharing.

Naruto faced them and crossed his arms in a huff, "I'm just lonely, can you blame me?"

"Go find Gaara, I saw him earlier with Temari and Shikamaru. He looked lonely too, so go be with him."

"This is why you guys are my smart friends, that's such a good idea! Catch you later!" Naruto flitted back through the crowd, finally leaving them alone.

Sakura had stepped away from Sasuke to give her suggestion to Naruto, so he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and brought her closer once more. The lively sounds of the festival were still going on behind them and the bursting fireworks had just started. As much activity as there was going on around them, it felt like just the two of them in their own little world. And that was just fine.

* * *

"Hey Sasuke?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm actually still kinda hungry. Let's get boba?"

* * *

**A/N:** the ferris wheel swinging cart accident happened to me at disneyland lol im scared of rides so i was really nervous to go on but we had been waiting forever i didnt want to get out of line for the normal car but i survived


	6. Ch 6: a paper crane for a paper heart

**A/N: **Inspired by the book "Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes", it was one of the first books to ever make me cry as a kid. My mom was a teacher and she used to read it to her class and she gave me to book later. Based on a Japanese legend, making a thousand origami cranes is said to make a wish come true.

* * *

"And then you fold this part over like that, and you have a crane! Well, yours is looking like it could use some work, Sasuke-kun. Make sure to fold it so you have clean, sharp edges. Like mine."

Sasuke hated this. He didn't see the point in this. He didn't know all of the details, but Sakura was very, very sick. Even dying. The fact that they were folding cranes while she sat in her hospital bed said it all. He grew more frustrated by the day; she should be back at school, at his house for dinner, at the gym, at the sweets shop—anywhere but here. He yearned for their younger days when they daydreamed about the future and folded paper airplanes full of hope instead of cranes weighed down by tragedy. The hospital made Sasuke exceedingly uncomfortable, but he'd be damned if he missed even a moment of what could very well be Sakura's final days.

And Sakura, ever the curious one, ever the optimist, took the experience as a time to learn. She was a great patient, allowing a million tests to be done on her for research purposes, asking all sorts of questions because she was genuinely interested in medical practice. When Sasuke asked her why she kept prodding the nurses for more information instead of relaxing in her bed, she just smiled at him and replied, "I'll need to be prepared for my future career, right?"

If it were anyone else, Sasuke wouldn't humor them, but this was Sakura, and he'd do anything for her. Really, even fold as many paper cranes as he could manage. Even when she was napping, which was becoming more frequent as her strength left her little by little, he folded. This side over that, taking care to make sharp edges. Nothing but neat, clean cranes would do.

* * *

Once, he was so distracted while fiddling with a half-finished crane, he gave himself a nasty paper cut. He had been staring at the tiny form on the hospital bed, consumed by his thoughts of a future without her when he sliced a thin line clean across his palm. Stupid cranes. Stupid sharp edges.

He hated how that phrase said by her soft voice kept ringing in his head. That's what Sakura was: pink, soft, warm. If someone was all cold and sharp edges, it was Sasuke.

When he wasn't with Sakura, it was more apparent than ever. He snapped more easily, got less sleep, zoned out when others spoke to him. His mind was always on Sakura, Sakura, Sakura. It felt pretty twisted: he had always felt happiest with her, but her condition made his mood incredibly sour. The only person he had ever felt comfortable enough with to talk about his feelings was Sakura. But he couldn't burden her with his fears and grievances, not when she was the one teetering between life and death each day. Sasuke's heart hurt so much, he sometimes felt like he was dying too.

So he kept folding, if not to just have an excuse to stay by her side without speaking. He wasn't sure what he could even say to her at this point. His mother had already tried talking to him about the stages of grief he already seemed to be experiencing, like anger and denial, but he just walked away from the conversation to go visit room 707.

It had been a month since that talk and she hadn't attempted to reason with him since. After he came home from the hospital that day was the first time he had allowed himself to cry in a long time.

* * *

Sakura's illness scared him even more because it seemed devastatingly similar to Itachi's. His beloved older brother was sick for a long time before he couldn't hold on any longer. If the same thing happened to Sakura, Sasuke wasn't sure what he could do to keep himself together. She was such an integral part of his life; losing her would be like getting half his heart scattered to the wind.

He loved Itachi deeply, but differently; their relationship was something he was born with and could always count on to be there, no matter what he did. Itachi would love him always. But he made the choice to love Sakura everyday, instead of pushing her away like he did in the past. She was the first to offer comfort when Itachi died, even when he lashed out at her. She had helped him to restore a sense of normalcy, but he couldn't return the favor.

But where had he gone wrong? He couldn't take any of it back now, even if he was hurting. Maybe if he had made different choices in the past, he could've protected her from something, anything. Maybe they wouldn't be in the situation they were in now. He felt so helpless. What was the point in having her by his side, knowing her, loving her, all in the past when she was about to be ripped away from his future?

Even as his thoughts walked themselves in circles, he couldn't imagine a life without Sakura, no matter the situation.

So he kept folding. Sharp edges on all the cranes: big, small, patterned paper, plain paper. Lots of pinks and greens. A part of him thought that maybe, just maybe, if he had wished hard enough and folded enough cranes back then, his brother would still be with them. So he would keep trying for Sakura.

* * *

When she first showed him the stacks and stacks of papers for the cranes, he asked her what she was going to wish for. She laughed at him, "I can't tell you! If you tell someone your wish, it won't come true."

Even though she was smiling, Sakura didn't bother asking Sasuke what his wish would be. They both knew what Sasuke was going to wish for and it was breaking their hearts.

He kept folding.

* * *

He was quite proud of himself and ready to show Sakura when he finally reached the last crane to fold. He swung by room 707, just to find the bed empty. His stomach dropped and he immediately thought the worst.

"Where is she? Where is Sakura?" he started shouting to no one in particular. He started to panic when no one answered and he slid his back halfway down the wall with his head in his hands. Was she...? Why didn't anyone tell him? They knew him since he was here almost everyday, they had his phone number after he insisted on being added to her emergency contacts list.

A kind nurse hurried over from the counter, "She's not here anymore. I guess it all happened too quickly for anyone to let you know."

Sasuke thought he was going to vomit.

"They moved her to a different unit this morning."

"A different unit? So she's not...dead?" his voice cracked and saying the word out loud nearly made him choke. "She's okay for now?"

The nurse smiled gently at him, "I think she's going to make a full recovery. The esteemed doctor Tsunade came to town yesterday and it turns out she's been doing years worth of medical research related to Sakura's illness. She's going to be able to help Sakura."

Sasuke didn't realize how much he had been shaking until his knees gave out and he fully collapsed to the ground. "Can you tell me where she is? I have something to give to her."

The nurse took pity on the kid and told him, even if protocol might say otherwise. Young love was really something.

* * *

Sasuke rushed up the stairs to the fifth floor, going through what felt like an endless maze of stark white, fluorescent lit hallways. His heart was pounding, nearly drowning out the sound of the hospital's endless conversations and crying and beeping equipment.

He finally rounded the corner to face a huge pane of glass. Sakura. It had to be her, there was no one else with that hair. But he couldn't get a clear view, a blonde woman he had never seen before was talking to the many other doctors, who he recognized as Sakura's doctors, in the room. It almost looked like she was teaching them something. Even reprimanding them. Was this the doctor the nurse downstairs had told him about? Sasuke didn't care who was in there, as long as they could make Sakura healthy again. He took a seat across from the window so he could still glance inside while folding.

Just one more. One more crane with meticulous sharp edges, and he could make his wish. The paper he chose for the final crane was a beautiful floral pattern, all pinks and greens and the feeling of spring and hope. A new beginning, a new life.

"Hey kid," a voice called. Sasuke looked up from the crane to see the blonde woman poking her head out of the door to Sakura's room. "She keeps asking for you so hurry up, get in here."

Sasuke scrambled to get out of his seat, nearly dropping the crane in his haste. As soon as he reached her bedside, Sakura sat up. It had been a while since she could do that on her own. She smiled with more brightness than he had seen in a long time and said softly, "Dr. Tsunade is so smart, I've learned so much."

"And I'm going to be fine."

Sasuke didn't trust his voice at the moment, so he wordlessly presented the thousandth crane. Sakura carefully took it from his hand to place it on the bedside table, next to the very first one he made with her. "Thank you, Sasuke-kun."

His heart felt like it was made of paper: it had nearly been torn in half, but it was going to be all smoothed out soon enough. What mattered was that his was still beating along with hers.

One thousand paper cranes, one wish.

One boy and one girl who would do anything for one more day together.

* * *

**A/N: **who would I be if not a writer who includes happy endings every time (even if it is kind of deus ex machina ish lol)! Hope you still liked it

After I wrote this I realized I could've gone with something inspired by AKB48's 365 Nichi no Kamihikouki/365 Days of Paper Airplanes, so I added the paper airplane part in the beginning. I really love that song

Something fun is coming tomorrow so please look forward to that!


	7. Ch 7: Sasuke and Sakura's Night Out!

Summary: Sakura and Sakura don't get out much, but just one night is enough to make up for a lifetime of staying in.

**A/N: **Very much inspired by my love for both the movie booksmart and those memes where it's like aren't you tired of being nice? Don't you want to just go absolutely fucking feral? Yeah, nerd SasuSaku going feral basically. something to make up for yesterday's angst, this was a ton of fun to write! Also why do i keep writing things i dont know about? Idk anything about the good old mary jane or drugs in general lol but just go with it this isn't really supposed to make sense

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, Booksmart, or anything mentioned in this story. I'm just a wee speck of dust in the universe

* * *

"One of these nights we should do something actually fun."

"Since when did watching movies with me stop being fun? Did you want a snack or something? I saw that post you tagged me in this morning, I guess we can build a blanket fort on the trampoline, but you can't complain about it being cold."

Sakura sat up from where she was lounging on Sasuke's bed, staring at the wall. "Now that you mention it, I could go for some boba. Or an edible."

Sasuke, sitting in his bean bag, stared at Sakura in disbelief, "do you even know what's in those?"

Sakura straightened up even more and looked down haughtily, "of course I do. Naruto told me a long time ago. And doesn't a brownie sound so good right now?"

"Sakura, you got drunk off a few sips of your Aunt Tsunade's rice wine and you're telling me you want to get _high_? We're about to go to college and you want to fry your brain?"

"We're about to go to _college _and we've never done _anything. _Do you know how lame that is?"

Sasuke seemed to contemplate Sakura's words for a moment before giving her a wolfish grin, sounding every bit the teenage boy he was, "that's not true. We've done stuff. We've had _sex_. Lots of it."

One of Sasuke's pillows sailed across the room towards his face, accompanied by a screech, "I knew it, I knew you'd say something dumb! What does it matter when you're already a stupid boy with no brain. Those ads are totally false, by the way. What's the harm in trying weed, Sasuke? I wanna try, so you should do it with me."

Despite being the captain of the speech and debate team, he couldn't find anything to argue about. He texted Naruto; at least he could trust their "plug" or whatever he's called by half the school.

Except, they actually couldn't because he was somehow all out and directed them to Kiba instead.

"Seriously? We've known Naruto, like, forever? And he lets us down now? Kiba is smelly and weird. His weed probably...smells like weed."

Sakura doesn't let up, "just text Kiba, he's not that bad. Don't be lame."

"What should I even say? Leaf emoji? Side eye emoji? Plug emoji? Is he going to give us a friends and family discount?"

"Sasuke, I know you love using color coordinated spreadsheets to organize your life, but now is not the time. Mention my name. Maybe he'll give us a hot girl discount."

"I just sent him 'weed' with a question mark. Oh, he already responded. He said come over right now and he'll 'give us the hook up.' Sakura, does that mean he wants us to have a threesome with us?" Sasuke asked with false, exaggerated concern.

That earned Sasuke another pillow thrown at his face (this time it's his favorite dinosaur plushie) before Sakura gets to her feet and announces with a rather dramatic clenched fist, "get in the car, we're going to Kiba's."

* * *

"Yooo, Sasuke! Woah! _And _Sakura? The Kiba Hut is going to have a blessed night if these two legends are here! Come on in guys, we're having a kickback."

As Kiba opened the door wider to let them in, a haze of smoke wafted out and the smell hit them like a wall. They had definitely come to the right place.

They saw Kiba's usual crew, Hinata and Shino, sitting on the couch looking very blissed out already, along with a number of other kids from their school. Sakura checked her phone, _isn't it like 9 pm? Is this late or early for this kind of stuff? _

"My guy Naruto told me you're here for some famous Kiba Hut edibles, and like, welcome to the bake sale, but I'm telling you man, you gotta try the newest from Shino. Shit's dank, bro."

The couple turned away from Kiba to look at Shino sitting there with his sunglasses still on despite being indoors. He raised a single hand in greeting, then gestured to a plate of brownies plus something less familiar in front of him. "The new goods or pot?"

Sasuke looked disturbed by the sight and was about to say "neither" before Sakura elbowed him sharply in the side, "we'll take both!" she cut in with a big smile.

"Adventurous! I fucking love it! Man, you kids are too cute, I'll give it to you real cheap. You got Venmo?" Kiba pulled his phone out to start the transaction.

Sakura glanced around, they had never been to Kiba's house before, so this was a new experience all around. She spotted a bowl of water by the kitchen, "uh, can dogs get high?"

Kiba laughed, "you're probably wondering where Akamaru is! He's chillin' in the backyard. He's cool with it though, he's a total bro. He's got hella treats out there, we've got hella treats in here. Equality, you feel?"

"For sure, for sure. I'll just approve the charge now and we'll be on our way!"

"Not so fast you two! Here at the Kiba Hut, we support tripping out in a safe environment, so you should take Shino's new-new here."

Sasuke and Sakura exchange glances. What did they have to lose?

* * *

Well, for starters, their grasp on reality.

They sat at Kiba's kitchen table to take what Shino gave them and saved the edibles for later. And it was like nothing they had ever experienced.

"Sasuke. Your eyes are really red. Like not just the whites but your uh, pupil or whatever is the colored part."

Sasuke rubbed at his eyes, "no they're not. I can see them. So I know they're not red."

"Uhh, okay? They totally are though. And..did your head get bigger?"

"No but yours did. Ha, if only Ino was here. Hey, forehead. Wait—what the fuck, when did we get so small?"

"Oh my god, you're so cute. You're so short, Sasuke, you're so _small!"_

_*A/N: please imagine them as the SD versions of themselves*_

Sakura started scooting forward on her chair. "What do we do now? How do we get down? We're so small. We can't stay here. What the fuck is going on? What did they give us?"

"It's so hot in here. What did Kiba say about getting ready to hot box? What does that mean, like sweaty boxing? Where's our water?" Sasuke looked up to their glasses of water on the table, which seemed miles away in their shrunken state.

"There's no way we can reach up there. My head feels too heavy for my body, I'll fall over if we try to jump."

"Shit. Shit, okay, take your jacket off, first of all, am I the only one melting? Are the walls melting? Just throw it on the ground and to make a cushion. I'll throw mine down on top and we can jump down."

"Are you insane? What if we die?"

Sasuke gave Sakura a judgemental look, "we might as well be, I'm so fucking _high! _Just jump, I'm sure it won't be that bad. Plus, I'll go first and I'll catch you," he finished with a wink. He threw his jacket down on the floor with a pointed expression. A burgundy cardigan soon followed. And Sasuke jumped.

A voice sounded from below, "it worked! I made it! Jump now!"

Somehow Sasuke's now doll proportion arms caught Sakura despite her now huge head. He set her down and started looking for the exit. There was no way they could push the kitchen door open, and he didn't even want to see Kiba at the moment. It was so hot in the kitchen, he just wanted to get out of there.

"Sasuke! There!" Sakura pointed across the kitchen to the backyard. The doggy door.

"Fucking score! Let's go."

He grabbed her hand and they scurried across the tile as fast as their little legs could take them. But they needed to climb up a small threshold to get through the door, and the run combined with the heat of the kitchen had really drained them. They exchanged a look. Desperate times called for desperate measures. Akamaru's dog bowl was full of water.

"Give me a boost!" Sakura told Sasuke as they faced the metal bowl. The way the metal warped their reflection made her feel even more tripped out, if that was possible. She just needed water _now. _

Sakura climbed up onto Sasuke's clasped hands, grabbing onto the edge of the bowl. She held herself up on the edge and dipped her head to take a cool, refreshing drink.

Except her mouth encountered strands of white dog hair floating all around the water. She nearly toppled backwards as she tried to spit it all out, "ew, ew! Disgusting!"

Sasuke lowered her and asked as if it wasn't already apparent, "so I'm guessing I shouldn't drink the dog water?" She shook her head, "let's just go outside."

They walked to Kiba's lawn and collapsed. It seemed like the sprinklers had just finished their cycle, so the cool, wet grass was a welcome change from the stuffy kitchen. "Sorry for dragging you here. I didn't think it would be like this," Sakura spoke quietly. Sasuke was a bit of a homebody to say the least, so when he didn't have a good time during their outings, she always felt guilty for pushing him too far for comfort.

But he didn't care as much as she always thought he did, he just enjoyed spending time with his girlfriend. They would both cherish these memories in the future since they were attending separate colleges. "It wasn't that bad. Makes for a good story, I guess."

Except the night wasn't over, because a deep growl sounded from the shadowy corner of the yard.

Sakura bolted up, "Akamaru?!" before Sasuke dragged her back down, "are you trying to get us eaten? Keep quiet and just run!" Sasuke pointed to the side gate and without another word, they made a break for it. They didn't bother locking the gate up again, too intent on getting the fuck out of there.

Sasuke took one look at his car and said, "nope. I'm not getting in that thing. We're still coming down and it's not safe. What if I get a DUI? What if we die? My dad would kill me either way." Sakura nodded along as they started walking down the street, not another soul in sight.

Konoha wasn't a huge town, despite never visiting Kiba's house before, they could easily make their way back. "Hey, the park isn't that far away. We could go sober up there then come back for your car?"

* * *

It seemed like whatever Shino gave them had mostly worn off during their walk and their stone bench looked more inviting than ever. They had shared countless moments there, from their first kiss, to their first "I love you". They even opened their college acceptance letters there. Sakura swung her legs back and forth on the bench, "You know, I still have the edible in my bag. Should we?"

Sasuke ran a hand through his midnight hair, "Jesus fuck, alright. We've gotten this far and I know you wanted to try it. We can split it."

They had been sitting and talking for quite some time when Sakura started giggling more and feeling _some type of way_. "Woah. Is this why half our classmates came to school high everyday? What have we been missing?"

Sasuke's eyes were half lidded as he slouched on the bench, "maybe Naruto is actually onto something. We should call him. Haha. Naruto. What a loser."

Sakura started patting around her pockets to call their friend, "Sasuke. I think I left my phone in my cardigan pocket, which we left on the kitchen floor. Fuck, I'm so stupid," but she was still laughing a little and Sasuke just shrugged. "It be like that. I left mine too. We can get them later and we can call Naruto later. Life is so chill."

Sakura smiled, "_exactly, _it really do be like that. And life is _so _chill. Like woah. Are you hungry by the way?" Sasuke perked up a bit and nodded, "starving. Ichirauku is just around the corner."

* * *

Sitting in the vinyl Ichiraku booth waiting for their cheeseburgers, Sakura was relieved to be somewhere she's familiar with. But then she spotted a face she's very familiar with after years of sleepovers and flower shop visits: Ino's dad. She ducked down started tapping her palm the table, "Sasuke, don't look, don't look, it's Ino's dad. This is terrible, he's like a fucking mind reader or something he's _totally _gonna know we're _high._"

"Can you stop, he'll look this way if you keep making noise. Just be chill or something." He couldn't help but steal a glance over his shoulder to confirm if it really was Inoichi. "Holy shit, wait. Is that Shikamaru's dad?"

Sakura craned her neck to see over Sasuke's head, "it totally is! And they're with Chouji's dad too! This is crazy. If they see us they're gonna tell my _mom. _And then I'll be on permanent house arrest." She sank lower into her chair until her pink head rested on the table.

Sasuke placed his chin on his folded hands. He had endured enough shenanigans for one night, it was time to just wait this one out. Once he got his cheeseburger with extra tomatoes he was ready to go home and knock out.

Except Chouza's laugh carried across the diner, and so did his booming voice, "just like the old days, right guys? We still get the munchies!"

Sakura perked back up when she heard this, "did he just say the munchies? Oh my god, Sasuke they're high. They probably smoked weed and now they're here because they have the munchies. Just like you and me. This night is too fucking weird."

Thankfully as the trio of dads was about to walk out with their food to-go, the waitress arrived with their order and blocked them from view. The pair ate in relative silence, glad for a moment of calm. But it didn't last because not long after the dads left, another familiar figure walked in.

"Sakura, you'll never fucking believe it. Actually just look, it's _Kakashi._"

She whipped around to see that it really was none other than their favorite literature teacher. She waved him over without thinking twice and Sasuke kicked her under the table. "What are you thinking," he grits out. Kakashi was cool, hell, cool enough to let everyone call him by his first name, but he was still their teacher. An adult who worked for their school. Someone who could totally get them in trouble. Like, worse than detention, and they'd never even had detention.

"If it isn't my favorite students," Kakashi smiled as if seeing them outside of school was a perfectly normal occurrence. "What are you doing here?" Sakura questioned innocently, as if it wasn't well into the night and she didn't reek of weed.

"Picking up some food," he answered matter-of-factly. "I could ask the same of you two, you're normally home studying at this time of night, am I wrong?" Nope, he was 100% correct.

Sasuke chose his words carefully, "tonight has been an anomaly. But I am ready for bed now." Kakashi nodded, "I see. You look like you're done eating, so it won't be long now. Drive carefully."

The students exchanged a look before Sasuke swallowed his pride and started to beg as best as he knew how, "please, can you drive us home, we walked here from somewhere else and I don't feel comfortable operating a motor vehicle in my currention condition, _if you know what I mean_." Kakashi considered the two of them. They were certainly acting strange. Was Sakura trying to wink at him or was that a nervous twitch?

His eyes crinkled, "one ride won't hurt, it's late and what kind of teacher would I be if I left my students out to fend for themselves? I'll just pick up my order and we can leave."

* * *

They got situated in the car, just to find their former elementary school teacher Iruka sitting in the passenger seat. Sakura's jaw dropped as she looks between Kakashi and Iruka. "You," she points to the gray haired man, "and you?" she points to the ponytailed man. "Huh," added Sasuke, "I thought Iruka hated tardiness, but Kakashi is late to class everyday."

"Honey," Iruka laughed nervously, "did you not tell your students about us? You always call them your precious students, I mean, I thought you'd tell at least these kids and Naruto."

"_Yeah," _jeered Sakura from the back seat, "what other secrets are you hiding _Kakashi?" _

"Sakura, shut up, shut up, Naruto texted me to come over now. He has something really cool to show us—or so he says. I wanna see, plus he owes us for sending us to Kiba's. Kakashi take us to Naruto's instead."

Kakashi sighed, "I've seen some shit being a teacher, but I never thought I'd become a chauffeur for my students. But alright." He made a U-turn and headed to Naruto's. He had been there plenty of times, seeing as Minato was the school principal and something of a mentor to Kakashi.

* * *

After a car ride filled with the _Mamma Mia _soundtrack (Iruka claimed it was neutral territory, everyone loves it), they finally got dropped off at Naruto's. They knocked on the door, ready for whatever surprise Naruto had to show them. When he flung the door open, they had never seen their friend so excited. His blue eyes were sparkling, "hurry! My room!" and he scurried into the house before they could even take their shoes off.

Naruto's room was already quite a sight to behold considering the orange color scheme and ramen cups littering his desk, but his new orange quilt wasn't what had Sakura screaming. "Why the fuck do you have a fox? Is that legal? Where did you get that thing?"

The blonde sniffed, "excuse me, 'that thing' has a name. Say hi to Kurama. Isn't he a cutie?" Sasuke crossed his arms. Yup, their best friend had lost his mind. Even the fox's collar and ID tag were orange. "And just what do you plan on doing with a fox, idiot?"

Naruto considered this for a moment, "I dunno. Didn't think that far. I got it from this guy I know. Do you think Suna State allows pets in the freshman dorms?" Sasuke pinched the bridge of his nose. Hopeless, he was really hopeless. And then he remembered how Naruto had let them down earlier, but he didn't think it was because he had acquired a new pet. "What was that all about earlier? How do you not have weed?"

"Oh yeah! I have something else to show you! It'll explain everything. Come into the basement. Say bye to Kurama first." Sakura half-heartedly waved at the rather grumpy looking fox in his cage before they followed Naruto down below.

* * *

There was no way the universe wasn't fucking with them. "Sai? Why the hell are you in Naruto's basement?"

"So rude, Saucey-k! He's my guest, you're a pest! And he's painting, duh." Their very strange and very pale friend was sitting in front of a giant canvas that nearly stretched the entire span of the wall. He was adding details to what looked like a picture of Naruto in a loincloth. He was lounging on his side, eating grapes with one hand, and petting a fox with the other.

"Yeah no shit, I can see that," Sasuke quipped, "but why?" Naruto huffed at him again, like it was obvious, "he needs money for his college tuition, so I commissioned him to paint me and Kurama. I'm looking pretty sexy, right?" Sakura didn't bother answering him, "how does this 'explain everything', though?"

Naruto snapped two finger guns at them, "oh, right! Sai is an artist. And he does his best work when he's high. He obviously needed a lot of weed to complete this masterpiece, so I gave him all my weed. It's like, paying it forward or something." If at all possible, Sasuke was even more irritated than before. He couldn't spare a gram for his lifelong best friends, but he could give it all to this guy? Traitor.

"Well, now that you've seen it, we should leave Sai to work in peace. Looks amazing, cutie! Kurama, we're coming back up, did you miss me already?"

* * *

"Wanna pet him? He's only bit me six times in the last hour, I think he really likes my vibe or something." Before either of them could protest, Naruto started opening the cage. "Kurama, come here, come here. Who's a good boy? Who wants to get pet?" His arms made a circle for Kurama to settle into when the fox started stalking towards the cage door. He pounced through the gap in Naruto's arms and hit the ground running.

"Kurama, wait! We were just becoming such good friends! Come back here!" The trio immediately chased after the animal, but he was too fast and he escaped out of their doggy door and into the night. They rushed into the backyard just in time to see Kurama leap over the fence and out of the Uzumaki property.

They all plopped down onto the grass and Naruto started wailing, "he's gone! What did I do wrong? Please, you guys we have to find him!" They definitely weren't high anymore, they were too tired for this, but they weren't shitty friends, so they agreed to go look for him.

* * *

They had even enlisted Sai to help them out. As they walked around Naruto's neighborhood calling for Kurama, Naruto's phone started ringing, "do you think Kurama is calling? He wants to come home!" He started excitedly fishing his phone out of his front pocket, "Kiba? Why would he be calling now?" Sasuke and Sakura settled on the sidewalk, expecting some weird conversation between dealers.

"You found him? Holy shit man! Yeah, yeah, I'll be there soon! Thanks bro!" he hung up the phone and faced his friends, "Kiba found Kurama! Let's go, we have to go now before Kurama starts missing me too much!"

And they were headed back to the place where the night had begun.

* * *

Thankfully Kiba only lived a few blocks away because Sakura's feet were dragging with exhaustion. They were standing in Kiba's backyard and she leaned against Sasuke's shoulder as they listened to the explanation. The back gate was mysteriously left open, and Akamaru wandered out into the front yard. He was having a relaxing evening chewing a bone on the front lawn when a fox appeared. It seemed that the fox smelled Akamaru's treat bank in the back and wanted a taste for himself. When Akamaru started barking like mad, very peeved that some other animal was trying to get at his precious treats, Kiba went outside to see what was going on. He just thought he was hallucinating since he was super high, but it was really a fox.

"And then I saw he had a tag and it had your name and number!" Kiba finished. Naruto had tears in his eyes, "that's amazing. Kurama probably smelled Akamaru and just wanted a friend. Friendship is so powerful!" He was hand feeding Kurama treats, who looked much more complacent now that he was being fed.

They all made their way back into the house just as Kiba's kickback was winding down. Sai disappeared into the kitchen for a while, returning with a cardigan and a jacket. "Ugly, this is a terrible color I've only ever seen you wear. And your boyfriend is basically attached to you, so I'm assuming this is his." Sakura reached out to grab them from his hands before settling back on the couch.

"Thanks again, Kiba. I'm gonna take Kurama home now," Naruto turned to face Sasuke and Sakura. "You two live in the opposite direction. Are you gonna walk?"

"I can drive." The whole group looked to the front of the room where the voice came from. "Shino?" asked Sakura, "I didn't even realize you were still here. And aren't you high?"

"I'm the supplier and the designated driver." When he offer any further explanation, Sasuke and Sakura shrugged and got up from the couch. Sasuke could get his car tomorrow. A free ride back to his comfy bed sounded wonderful.

* * *

Sakura had fallen asleep almost immediately when she got back to her own room, not even bothering to change her outfit. It had to be well into the afternoon when she finally woke up. Her head felt fuzzy and her mouth was dry. Was last night even real?

She grabbed her phone out of her cardigan pocket just to find that it was dead. But her pocket also held a napkin, "what is this? I don't remember putting this in here?"

She unfolded the white napkin to see one of Sai's signature ink drawings. It depicted Sakura, drawn in red pen, leaning against Sasuke, drawn in blue pen. He even added a bit of background—it looked like the grass and fence of Kiba's backyard. He must've drawn it when he went into the kitchen. Sakura plugged her phone in and flopped back down onto her bed. She stared at the little drawing, wishing she was with Sasuke right now.

So last night was real.

* * *

**A/N:** this isnt meant to make nerds feel bad about staying at home. im writing fanfic so i am the nerd at home

also i finished this at like 5 am so pls dont mind any mistakes lol not that this is a serious work in the first place


	8. Chapter 8: Sit on this cactus

**A/N:** I love ss annoying each other. I was really stumped by this prompt at first so I'm not in love with this but I hope I did okay lol I'll put my original idea in the notes at the bottom

* * *

The only way for Sakura to get Sasuke to take her somewhere new and actually exciting was to get under his skin. He was rather cautious when it came to her wellbeing, but she didn't care nearly as much. The point of traveling together was to experience new things, even if it meant being vulnerable and uncomfortable. She knew she could be annoying, if you will, but it was fun.

"No, I don't think I've ever heard of that. Probably doesn't even exist. Sasuke-kun when did you become a liar?"

Sasuke whipped around to face Sakura, ready to start seething. They had been discussing where to go next—Sasuke wanted to play it safe, Sakura wanted to see something new and visit the Sand in one fell swoop—when Sasuke vehemently denied Sakura's request. When pushed for an explanation, he muttered something about how he wouldn't even like to visit an oasis if it meant going through the desert. To which Sakura played dumb, "What's an oasis? Can we go see it?" Sasuke tried explaining, but he wasn't great with words, so he ended with, "you really don't know what an oasis is?" Sakura shook her head innocently and pleaded some more to go see it.

"No, and that's final. I normally don't care where we go, but it's the middle of summer and it's hot. If we run out of water, you'll have a heatstroke. And it's sandy, windy, and dry—all very unpleasant. And all of that is easily avoidable if we keep going this direction," he dug his foot around in the lush grass where they were standing. Sasuke ran hot while Sakura ran cold, so he became more easily irritated when he was too warm, while Sakura enjoyed cozying up to Sasuke when she felt a chill. He tended to blush scarlet when Sakura got close, making him even more like a furnace. And the last Uchiha was surprisingly cuddly.

He wouldn't budge, he didn't feel like going to the Sand when he knew the Kazekage's brother had a crush on his wife and, along with the actual Kazekage, thought he just wasn't good enough. To make matters worse, Gaara was _very _fond of his best friend, and Sasuke felt constantly judged by the entire village whenever he went anywhere near the Sand. In most people's eyes, he wasn't even half the war hero that Naruto and Sakura were. He traveled for a reason: he mostly preferred solitude only broken by a certain pink haired woman. He asked again if she had seriously never heard of an oasis. But when Sakura accused him of making up an oasis entirely, his mind was set on proving her wrong.

They practically marched across the desert until they reached it. "There, an oasis, it exists. I told you so. Are you happy now?" Sasuke gestured to the inviting body of water up ahead while the wind kicked up sand and knotted their hair.

Sakura smiled at him, not minding the harsh sun one bit, "just dandy! So you _were _telling the truth. I'd say I'm impressed, but then again your imagination isn't that great. And would you look at that, we're not far from the Sand, we should just go there now."

"You're annoying. I should push you in the water, I'm sure you'd have a wonderful time. Oh wait, have you heard of water? Do you know what that is?" Sasuke rolled his eyes then turned on his heel in the direction of the hidden village, "fine, hurry up and let's go." If she was anyone else, he would've chucked a cactus in their direction.

And Sakura practically skipped to the village. She had certain medicinal herbs she needed to pick up and an overly cautious, insecure Sasuke wasn't going to stop her. There was plenty she could do to make up for it.

* * *

**A/N: **here's my dumb first idea i hope u can at least laugh at this (or at yesterday's post please i didnt write 4k words for no one to read it fdsdjfd sorry):

"Anyway here's wonderwall."

"What did you just say?"

"Here's wonderwall. by oasis." A few beats later, "It's something I picked up from Naruto. He says people say it online all the time, I've never seen it, but I think you say it when something is awkward."

"Why would you listen to him? Or a band named Oasis?"

"I've actually never heard the song, my Spotify subscription expired." Sakura eyed Sasuke's airpods. She knew he had Apple Music on his phone. "So are you gonna pull up the official music video or what?"


	9. Chapter 9: Househusband in the making

**A/N**: I wrote this really quickly again because poor planning skills. I'm excited for tomorrow's it's family fluff :) have a college au for now

* * *

"That's all it takes to get you drunk? Really Sasuke? What have you even tried?" Sasuke cradled his can of hard seltzer and warily eyed Sakura as she marked a tally on her arm again, putting her up to shot number 7.

"Rice wine at a family party."

"That's it? Have you gone outside, like, ever?"

"Can't say I have," Sasuke drawled. But Sakura always enjoyed his dry humor, so when she punched him on the arm it was cushioned by the sight of her pretty smile. They were at a party, their first together despite having dated for nearly two years. They were both busy with school and typically stuck within their own circle, or stayed home together. Naruto liked to call parties the perfect cocktail of "babes, bros, and beer," which made both of them wildly uncomfortable thinking about a drunk Naruto trying to pick someone up, so they usually declined when he invited them out.

"Yo, Sasuke! We're about to play a drinking game, you down?" one of the guys they knew casually called.

Sasuke eyed the table covered in red cups filled to the brim with cheap beer, "not sure about that. I'm not really trying to get drunk tonight." He just wanted to go home and sleep and eat snacks.

"Aw come on," another guy goaded, "it's just beer. It'll be lit."

Sasuke was about to refuse once more before Sakura stepped in, "We'll play, I can drink for him. I took shots but I'm still not really feeling anything." She waved her arm around to show off the tally marks. For someone so petite, she could really put them away.

Everyone standing around the table looked over at Sakura: small, pink, and a _girl. _"Bro, what kind of guy lets his girlfriend drink for him? Don't tell me you're drinking seltzer, that's for females and shit."

Sasuke thought about it. Sakura was strong in many ways. Physically, she spotted him at the gym and pushed him to hit a new max, she opened jars for him, and she constantly towed around heavy medical textbooks. Sasuke knew he was strong too: he carried her to her bed when she fell asleep studying on the couch, he was excellent at smashing bugs, and he carried their groceries on the way back because Sakura liked to talk with her hands. Sakura was strong enough to not be turned off by his sour moods and aversion to being vulnerable in the early days of their relationship. Sasuke supposed he was strong enough to have a girlfriend who had a mind of her own and would go on to become more educated than him and probably make more money than him. Sasuke supposed he was just that kind of guy.

"Have you even tried this shit? It's fucking tasty. Fuck off, she'll outdrink you, don't test her," Sasuke decided to finally answer. "It's 2019, what kind of guy even cares?" he added. Sakura smiled up at him and turned to face the guys gathered around the table, "so who's chugging first?"

* * *

When they finally made their way home, with Sasuke carrying Sakura on her back because she outdrank all those guys like a champ, she mumbled in his ear, "so, got any rice wine recommendations? We should throw a party. But just us. And just rice wine. It'll be classy and cute and kind of like a honeymoon."

Sasuke set her down on her bed, "I'll let you know tomorrow. Right now I have a little recommendation for you, it's called water. Have you heard of it?" And since his girlfriend was smart and studious, she began listing the properties of water.

* * *

**A/N:** Sasuke says fuck gender roles! Sasuke says equal rights! *mic drop*

Also as I was thinking of the title I thought of more househusband!sasuke one shots so now I have more ideas for future days haha. People probably think I love college parties and there's nothing wrong with them besides um actually many things but they're just fun to write. I'm actually Sasuke, it's bedtime soon.


	10. Chapter 10: You may now kiss the kage

**A/N: **I don't like negativity but to the anon who left rude reviews on my last two chapters don't bother reading anymore of my writing if you think I need to "redeem" myself lol if you were so psyched about a prompt just write it yourself next time! It's free!

* * *

"Mama you sit there, Papa sit here. The show will start soon. Pwease be patient." Sarada disappeared behind the puppet stage Sasuke built two weeks ago, complete with red velvet curtains.

Sasuke and Sakura were far too large for the tiny plastic chairs at Sarada's child size table, but her stuffed animals fit just fine. They even had enough room for their special occasion outfits: tutus, scarves, hats, coats. Sarada had served them all invisible tea in plastic cups with matching saucers, so it was quite the formal affair.

Nearing the age of four, Sarada was having a grand old time playing with her favorite plushies and faux shuriken. She recently took an interest in putting on performances with puppets sent by Uncle Gaara's brother. He still expressed his gratitude to Sakura for saving his life even after all these years, so he liked to send gifts to Sarada when he was already planning to send something to Shikadai.

She was having so much fun, Sasuke decided to build the stage to further her career in puppet performances. The sparkling joy in her eyes, so similar to his own, made the very embarrassing number of splinters he got during the project entirely worth it.

"Everyone pwease rise!" Sarada's voice sounded behind the stage. Knocking their knees on the table, Sasuke and Sakura got to their feet in anticipation for the start of the show. They exchanged glances, "why do you think we're standing instead of enjoying our tea?" mused Sasuke.

Sarada poked her head out from behind the curtains, "no talking, Papa. Don't you know it's rude?" Sakura had taken Sarada and ChoCho to see a "Shinobi Spectacle: Live!" production, so now Sarada thought she knew all there was to know about manners, etiquette, and politeness during a performance. Mikoto would have been very proud.

"Please welcome the great and honorable Mr. Fox as he walks down the aisle to his equally great and honorable love, Mr. Sand!" As her parents stood motionless, simply observing the Mr. Fox's entrance, Sarada whispered, "you're supposed to clap here." The couple made sure to clap as loud as they could—Sarada had inherited quite the temper hidden away behind all her adorableness. Besides, someone had to pick up for her stuffed animals' slack (I'm looking at you Mr. Dinosaur).

As Sarada started making a very long winded and surprisingly touching speech about the love between Mr. Fox, a puppet clad in orange, and Mr. Sand, covered in tan cloth, Sasuke and Sakura wondered who she could be talking about. The Uchihas knew their daughter admired both the Hokage and Kazekage greatly, but they didn't think she kept up so closely with their love life. At the end of the ceremony, she pronounced them Mr. and Mr. then finished with a dramatic kiss. Mr. Sand really knew how to sweep a fox off his feet.

Soon the happy couple joined the others at the table for the reception. Sarada played a perfect host, and her parents continued along as polite guests. She poured more tea, which Sasuke nearly forgot to pretend to sip until Sakura pinched his leg out of Sarada's sight, and made sure all her plushies were having a jolly old time.

Sarada smacked a palm to the center of her forehead, "I'm sowwy, I almost forgot cake! What's a party without cake!" She scurried around her room gathering the necessary items, such as plastic strawberries and more tiny plates. Since trying cake at a birthday party, Sarada loved to come up with as many "special occasions" to eat more of the tasty treat. Monday morning? Cake time. Learned a new word? Cake time. Ate all her vegetables? Definitely cake time. Sasuke took longer to give in, so disgusted with the amount of sugar in desserts in general, but Sakura would usually agree so long as she got a bite too.

As they happily pretended to eat cake, Sarada jumped to her feet and announced, "time for their first dance!" Sasuke and Sakura swayed gently together as they watched Sarada make the puppets twirl and leap around her room. To share a life and be married brought great joy to the both of them, and their daughter only made it all that much sweeter. Sarada looked up to ask everyone to please present the wedding gifts, but her parents were staring gently at each other for the moment. Mr. Fox and Mr. Sand were lucky to have found each other, thought Sarada, but in her eyes, anyone would be lucky to have what Mr. Papa and Mrs. Mama have together.

* * *

**A/N: **when I was writing this I was thinking of Bonnie playing in Toy Story 3. Such a cutie. And I know this is a very American take on weddings lol sorry wrote it in 30 mins if not already obvious by the length


	11. Chapter 11: Even ice cubes melt

**A/N: **my header on twt is that screenshot of ss together at the end of the clash in the land of snow or whatever movie and i love it. I don't really remember much of what happens in that movie lol but i love genin ss love ss so here's this

* * *

It was the end of a long fight filled with the usual twists and turns. Despite the shortcomings of team 7, they were able to pull through again thanks to their improved skills and teamwork. Naruto and Kakashi were off talking with the others and Sasuke found himself lying flat on his back with his head in Sakura's lap. He doesn't quite remember how they got here, just that they had worked together in the battle until that point. Sakura was her usual analytical self and helped him land his attacks more effectively despite the daunting enemy.

A delicate flower that was able to bloom in adversity. He admired her, if he was being honest. On a mean spirited day, he would pity her for her lack of a clan and kekkei genkai, but on a better day like this, he was mostly impressed with how far she had come already.

He never felt like talking with his lazy sensei and idiot teammate, but today the chill in the air and the fight left him drained. He was tired and looked forward to getting some sleep later that night. He could sense Sakura's hand nearly coming to rest on his head, but pulling away every time. Sasuke closed his eyes. It wouldn't hurt to get a head start on rest right now.

Sakura was comfortable to lay on and his battle worn body started to relax. After a few minutes of silence apart from the distant chatter of Naruto and Kakashi, Sakura worked up the courage to run her fingers through Sasuke's hair. The snow absorbed much of the small sounds around them, but Sakura could've sworn she heard Sasuke release a gentle sigh.

Most people thought of Sasuke as some ice cube that couldn't be cracked, but even he wasn't immune to a bit of spring sunshine. Lately it felt like his heart was thawing the most it ever had since before the night of the massacre. Where there was winter, spring would always follow, breathing new life into the world. New bonds were starting to take root in his heart, but he didn't mind as much as he thought he would. He would just have to make a bit of room.

The snow continued to fall around them, but Sakura wasn't cold.

* * *

_Thump!_

Naruto screeched and turned around, the back of his neck covered in powdery snow, "what was that for!?"

Sasuke smirked and simply said, "target practice." Sakura giggled and burrowed deeper into the high neck of her cloak. Kakashi was walking up ahead, leaving his genin to their own devices. Naruto kept badgering Kakashi with questions about the former enemy and recapping their mission as if he wasn't also there. Sasuke and Sakura were following from behind when they exchanged a look and quietly gathered two large snowballs. Sakura kept hers hidden behind her back when Sasuke threw his with perfect accuracy.

"Sakura, tell him to stop being mean to me! Can you please get this snow off, I'm cold!" Naruto was swatting at the snow still stuck to his neck, but kept missing chunks that eventually slid down his shirt. _Thump! _

The side of Naruto's face was now also coated with snow, even his whiskers were hidden from view. Sakura smiled at him, "sorry, what was that?" Naruto wailed in despair, "not you too! You are both going down!"

And the snowball fight commenced, with Sasuke and Sakura teaming up on Naruto just because it was easy to get him worked up. But since the three were always a team at their core, they all shared the same thought while throwing snow at each other's faces. If they threw snow at Kakashi's face and it somehow got underneath his mask, would he pull the mask down to wipe it? It wasn't their best idea, but definitely not the worst either.

Kakashi turned around and sighed after feeling the stares of three pairs of eyes on his back. It was time to go home where there wasn't any of this stupid snow.

* * *

**A/N: **sakura is so strong for having sasukes fat head in her lap

Like i said i dont have much planned for the coming days (until day 17 to be exact) so i'll probably just post things i write super quickly. My pride is telling me to not break my streak but the rational part of my brain is like or you could just not post LOL its okay because i enjoy it :) peace see u next time


	12. Chapter 12: Set me down gently

**A/N: **this is connected to my piece from day 1. I wasn't sure what to write (as usual lol) but I got so excited seeing the sasuke retsuden cover I had to post something! What goes up must go down, even the cutest bb sarada

* * *

Sarada liked to be held. Their friends claimed she would never learn to walk with how often Sasuke had her cradled to his side with one arm, but he didn't care. He always insisted on carrying Sakura while she was pregnant, but she was an adult who could use her words and claimed she could walk just fine. She indulged him when Sarada was actually born: he got to use susanoo as he carried them through the forest on the way back home. Sarada, on the other hand, would cry until she was scooped up in his arms. As soon as he saw her precious face for the first time, he knew he would deny her of very little.

"She has to come down eventually," Sakura chided Sasuke as he toted their daughter around while he did household chores. Sasuke tucked Sarada closer to him, "later." Sakura got to hold her for nine months straight, he wanted his moment.

* * *

Even when Sakura tried to set their baby down for a nap, she would cry and fuss until someone picked her up. A little rocking in their arms, and she would fall asleep instantly. She was more likely to open her mouth for the spoon full of mush when her parents held her instead of sitting her in a high chair. Honestly, Sarada was too adorable and cuddly and squishy for her parents to resist. At least that was Sakura's excuse.

One night, they closed the door to Sarada's room after putting her to sleep. "Clingy like her mother," Sasuke joked softly. "I'll show you clingy," Sakura whispered before hopping on Sasuke's back, locking her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist. He carried her like that to their bedroom and muttered, "never said it was a bad thing."

* * *

And their clinginess, their love for physical affection made it even more difficult for Sasuke to leave on his mission. He wouldn't be there to kiss his girls goodnight or carry them to bed when they fell asleep. Distance would never change the fact that he was a husband and father, but it would still hurt his heart. If he held his daughter close enough now, would she know how much he loved her when she grew up without him? If he kissed his wife deeply enough now, would she forgive him for leaving her once again? It seemed all he could offer was a forehead poke, but Sakura understood how it held the promise of his return and protection from the shadows. Their connection was greater than just physical.

On the night before he left the village, Sasuke carried his daughter to bed one last time. She was getting bigger and heavier, but it was nothing compared to the burden he had to shoulder for the sake of the village. As much as he wished the circumstances were different, he would have to set her down after all. The only thing that calmed his mind was that she had Sakura.

* * *

By the time Sasuke returns to the village, she's old enough to walk up trees and run around on missions with her team. She didn't need him to carry her anymore, but a hug goodbye the next time he leaves wouldn't hurt anyone. Sasuke was never one for physical affection until he got together with Sakura and had a child, but he was always drawn to them with a need to be close to them. They were at the center of his world and he would carry them in his heart, always.

* * *

**A/N:** this started out cute enough but by the end i actually made myself so emo because sasuke loves his girls so much wow T-T also people told my mom i wouldnt learn how to walk too but i became a dancer so take that!


	13. Chapter 13: Carry me home

**A/N: **skipping a day? Not this time

This is also connected to days 1 and 12 :D

* * *

Sasuke was sleeping peacefully on the forest floor when he awoke to a great pressure on the middle of his chest. He cracked one eye open, "Sakura, you're heavy."

"It's because I'm pregnant, you jerk," Sakura crossed her arms on top of her growing belly. She just wanted him to wake up already, so she sat on him. It made sense before she realized he was having trouble breathing. She liked to think she took his breath away, but not like that.

Sakura rolled off her husband to rest on her side. Her pregnancy hormones were throwing her moods all over the place. One moment, she missed her husband, even though he was always by her side, and the next she was crying. Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes, "I feel so fat. I've never been this heavy and I still have a long way to go with this pregnancy."

Oh no, thought Sasuke, here we go again.

He sighed. He was plenty awake now. "Sakura, you're carrying our child. You of all people should know how natural it is to gain weight."

His wife glared at him, "no pregnant lady in the history of all shinobi has gained this much weight. It's your fault. _You _got me pregnant and _you _feed me all the time."

Guilty as charged. Despite their traveling, Sasuke always made sure Sakura had more than enough food to satiate her and the baby. And then some. Her cravings took them to multiple food stands in every village, and he always carried snacks in case hunger struck. Sasuke privately thought she looked adorable when she munched away with her cheeks stuffed.

Sakura got to her feet, standing so Sasuke could see her side view, "just _look_. Our baby is probably going to be huge. My feet are so swollen. My back hurts." The list went on. Pregnancy was a beautiful thing, but it was also hard and annoying and long.

Sasuke stood up too, stepping behind her to place his one hand on her stomach, "do you want me to...carry you?"

She twisted, more tears pooling in her green, green eyes, "you would do that for me?"

Now Sasuke was uncomfortable. He didn't like to see her cry, so he merely nodded, hoping they could get on with their morning now. She dabbed at her eyes, "that's sweet, Sasuke-kun, but I thought I was _heavy?"_

"You are," he smirked at her as he bent down to slide his legs under her legs. He lifted her and she looped her arms around his neck. Sakura might be heavy, but Sasuke was strong. And he would never drop her, not in a million years.

They hadn't been walking more than ten minutes when Sakura cleared her throat, "are you hungry or is it just me?"

* * *

**A/N: **sorry this is so short and im posting these late i didn't have ideas beyond a few sentences until now but i wanted to post lol


	14. Chapter 14: Over the night sky

**A/N: **me on twt: omg imagine team 7 calling kakashi dad on accident :(

My brain: ok but make it sasusaku

Title is inspired by dreamcatcher's song over the sky because i couldnt think of anything lol stan dreamcatcher

* * *

"Hey, dad—Kakashi. When is our next mission?"

This was the second time that week. Kakashi suspected it was because the anniversary of the Uchiha massacre was nearing, so Sasuke must have been thinking about his family more than usual. If it were anyone else besides maybe Naruto, Kakashi would've been insufferable, would've made a joke, would've never let them forget, but he was fond of Sasuke and let it slide. He knew what it was like to miss a father and he knew what it was like to find something like one in a sensei.

"In a few days. We'll just keep training until then, alright?" Sasuke was always fidgety without anything to do, even training seemed dull compared to the excitement of a mission. But it was out of his control, so he simply nodded and continued working through various jutsu.

Naruto was off training in his own corner, but Sakura approached Sasuke from behind and asked hopefully, "Sasuke-kun why don't we take a break? We could go get some tea?"

He didn't even turn away from the training post, "there's no time for that. You should be training too."

Sakura deflated before muttering about how training is pointless unless supplemented by the proper amount of rest and nutrition. Despite her words, her expression was one of longing as she watched Sasuke continue training. Kakashi sighed. He also knew what it looked like when a girl was in love.

* * *

"What are you thinking about?" Sasuke nudged Sakura as they sat in the grassy training ground, breathing heavily after sparring. Her eyes were unfocused as she looked up to the night sky.

"You."

His wife, ever the flirt. He thought she had grown out of her genin habit of flirting with him, but it only got worse once they actually got married. Now, she knew he loved her even when she was being annoying, so her confidence levels when flirting with him were off the charts.

He rolled his eyes, but chose to say nothing. She started to laugh, "I'm serious. Remember when we used to train with Kakashi here? You never let me spar with you, but it's not like that anymore."

"No," he agreed softly, "things have changed." The gentle breeze rustling Konoha's leaves hadn't changed, the stars in the inky sky hadn't changed, but the two shinobi in the training ground had changed substantially since their genin days. Beyond just training together, they ate together, slept together, lived together. Married couples tended to do things like that.

A shooting star went by, but Sakura didn't hold her breath and make a wish like she used to as a young girl. She didn't need to wish for anything anymore when Sasuke was right beside her.

* * *

**A/N: **sighhh this didn't turn out as well as i wanted but to do it justice wouldve required more time and im not very patient so im posting it anyway sowwy maybe i'll edit it in the future lol


	15. Chapter 15: Lady Uchiha

**A/N: **I just wanted an excuse to use Lord and Lady Uchiha because Mr. and Mrs. Uchiha from Sasuke Retsuden cover f'ed me up. I don't pray so I was like uhh how do I even write about that but maybe this old lady can help

* * *

The open market was bustling with civilians and shinobi alike on a bright, crisp morning. The turning of the season from winter to spring brought an exciting array of new fruits and vegetables. One elderly Konoha resident was buying her weekly groceries when she heard a gasp followed by an increase of murmurs around her.

"There she is!" a young girl at the next stall over whispered to her circle of friends, "that's Lady Uchiha! Isn't she so pretty?"

Lady Uchiha? The old woman looked away from the tomatoes she had been pawing through to look in the direction the girl pointed in. Before the village was destroyed in Pain's attack, she lived near the Uchiha district and had been rather fond of their youngest, Sasuke. It always brought a smile to her face seeing him scurry past her window on his way to the Academy or ride on his brother's back. She grieved for him after the massacre. When he left the village, she thought she couldn't blame him because she hadn't seen him smile since before that night. Who would want to live in a village full of bloodstained memories?

She remembered the late Uchiha matriarch, Mikoto. She thought Mikoto was the most elegant and beautiful woman she had ever laid eyes on, so it was fitting that this blossom would succeed her. Her soft pink hair blew gently in the wind as she surveyed what the market had to offer that day. The old woman had seen many people in her time, and based on her bright eyes and open expression, she thought this young woman looked kind. And in their harsh shinobi world, kindness was a rare and valuable trait to have.

The old woman watched Lady Uchiha float between stands, picking out a peach here, a basket of cherries there. She eventually made her way to the stall next to the old woman, casting a critical eye over the piles of tomatoes. She clucked her tongue under her breath, "why are so many of these bruised? Half of them aren't even ripe, oh this won't do." Her brow furrowed as she continued her search until a perfect, red tomato resting on a wrinkled palm was held out to her.

"Here," the old woman offered, "I looked through those too. Today's shipment was just bad, I suppose. I have too many, though, so take some of mine." A wide smile broke out over the younger woman's face, "you are doing me such a big favor! My husband loves these, I was getting so worried when I didn't see any." She started babbling about how he just returned from a mission and she was preparing a feast for them that night.

The old woman transferred more of the tomatoes from her bag into Lady Uchiha's hands. By the way Lady Uchiha talked about her husband with a twinkle in her eye, it was clear she loved him very deeply; it seemed that Lord Uchiha was being taken care of well. His mother would've been glad to see it.

She didn't know when the two had gotten married, but not every shinobi was lucky enough to have such a relationship, so anytime spent together must've been cherished. Young love was both refreshing and heartwarming. The old woman would be sure to include the couple in her nightly prayers.


	16. Chapter 16: Throw it in the air

**A/N: **I watched unrequited love on netflix in a week (which is very good for me lol im so bad at watching shows) and I loved it so much. The female lead writes in her diary about the male lead all during their school years so that inspired the first part. (if you've watched it i cried every time they showed the wall that said "luo zhi loves sheng huainan. nobody knows" ahh my heart!)

Title is from love letter by seventeen :)

* * *

day 17: ink and paper

After being in the same class for so many years, one would think that Sakura would have mustered up the courage to talk to Sasuke by now. She wasn't as shy as she once was, but despite Ino's weekly pep talks, her steps always faltered when she tried to get closer to him.

She ranked at the top of their class, right next to him, but it felt like she was always looking at his back. He hardly acknowledged anyone in their class, so she tried not to take it to heart when he always seemed to avoid eye contact with her. But Sakura's heart was too big, she took everything too personally, and she felt like she would never get close enough to tell him how she really felt.

So her diary heard all about Sasuke for years and years and years. The pages were well acquainted with how his back looked as she trailed behind him in the hallway, how fast he ran when playing games at lunchtime, how his eyes never seemed to miss anything. She always used purple ink when writing about Sasuke.

For all her years of observation, Sakura could never quite tell exactly how Sasuke felt, let alone how deeply. She always missed the signs.

When she looked at him, the back of his neck would prickle with heat. When he had to pass out tests and he got to her paper (with a 100% at the top, always), his hands got a little sweaty. She was kind to everyone in their class, so he didn't want to read into her sweet smiles too much.

But he caught her staring at him so often, could always feel those green, green eyes boring into his back. He always had to look away from her, never wanting to scare her off with his midnight eyes and stormy disposition. She didn't bother him the way the other girls in their class always did. He noticed her and he needed her to know. He decided he would share his lunch with her one day during freshman year. The peaches growing in his backyard were particularly ripe this year, so when the lunch bell rang, he got ready to approach her with the sweetest smelling fruit he could pick.

He rounded the corner outside their classroom and was merely five paces away from tapping her on the back so she would turn around and face him, finally, _finally _face him after he avoided her for so long. She often seemed to shy away from his intensity, but he would be gentle, at least for her. Before he even extended his hand, Naruto threw his arm around Sakura and declared, "Sakura's my girlfriend!" to all their friends.

Sasuke walked back around the corner so quickly he missed the way she shoved him off and looked around to see if Sasuke was nearby to witness it all. She wouldn't want him to get the wrong idea.

She didn't see that familiar spiky hair, but she noticed a peach had fallen on the ground and split open.

* * *

It wasn't until nearly a year later did Sakura decide that she couldn't take it anymore.

Her latest diary was nearly full, and every time she laid eyes on him it felt like her mouth would betray her and blurt out her secret. She couldn't hide around the corner forever.

It was Valentine's Day, and she always hoped to open her locker to find a gift from a secret admirer. This year, though, was the same as usual and her locker only held heart shaped chocolates from Ino. Just because no one was confessing their undying devotion to her didn't mean the holiday was any less special. Sakura loved Valentine's Day, the pinks and reds were familiar and welcomed. She still wrote to him with purple ink.

It was a long letter that read the way Sakura talked, rambly and sweet, but always firm in her feelings. There was no way Sasuke would lack any clarity when it came to understanding how Sakura felt about him. She wished for his happiness at the end, even if it wasn't with her. She just needed him to know.

As usual, his back was turned to her when she approached him. He was standing at his locker rifling through papers when her soft voice sounded, "Sasuke?"

He turned around immediately, nearly dropping his papers in his haste. Her heart beat even faster. The letter felt like it was burning a hole in her pocket.

She had already written everything she had to say to him, so she didn't bother with a speech she knew she would mess up. She took the letter out and handed it to him, "Happy Valentine's Day." The paper was shaking slightly in her grip.

Sasuke looked at the letter for several long moments before he took it from her and murmured, "thank you, Sakura."

She hadn't even been sure if he was going to take it, so a verbal response sent her stomach in a flurry and had her cheeks stained pink. She went back around the corner into the classroom so quickly she missed the smile on his face.

* * *

She didn't get a response until one month later.

Or, she didn't even allow him to get close to her, worried he would reject her face-to-face rather than just ignoring her. When she glanced at his back, it was more quickly than before. When she walked around their classroom, it was never past his desk.

Sasuke wondered if the letter had been a dare, a prank. He hardly felt her looking at him anymore. Had he been wrong in his assumption that she liked him? Was she really Naruto's girlfriend?

He didn't care. He wasn't so callous as to not give her an answer, especially when he had been trying to get close to her for so long, if only she would let him.

On White Day, Sakura found a plump peach sitting on top of a letter on her desk. She bit into the peach, but quickly shoved the letter in the space under her desk, worried she would start crying, tears of joy if it was really from who she hoped, tears of disappointment if it was someone else. The sweet peach juice rolling down her chin was much preferred to her salty tears.

Sasuke watched from the back door of their classroom. Was she that hungry?

* * *

His letter had been short and to the point, but it was more than enough for Sakura.

_I like you too._

* * *

Sakura knew she was a hopeless romantic, but hadn't expected her boyfriend to be one too. They continued writing to each other even though they went to school together. A letter in her locker was enough to make Sakura beam all day. She had waited a long time for this.

They even developed the habit of passing notes in class, something the two top students never would have done. They were lucky enough to be Kakashi's favorite students, so he pretended not to notice the colorful sticky notes from Sakura's stationary collection being passed across the aisle.

_I'm bored. _

_Hi bored, I'm Sakura! _

_Don't be annoying. What are you doing?_

_Writing to you?_

_I was hoping for something more exciting. I'll have to start. I'm sitting here, waiting for class to end so I can eat lunch with my girlfriend. _

_You must have one lucky girlfriend if she gets to eat with you ;) I'm sitting here being distracted by my boyfriend._

_I know you're bored too. You've looked at the clock ten times within the last two minutes. _

_It's a twitch... _

_Hm, what else is over there? Kakashi sensei's desk? Does someone have a crush? Should I be worried?_

_Oh yeah, because old pervs who smell like dog are my type. I'm hungry. _

Sasuke placed a peach gently on her desk along with a note: _Wash your hands before we eat lunch, they're covered in ink. Now pay attention in class. _

Sakura folded the note in half and turned back to her notebook. She would need to focus if she wanted to keep her spot above Sasuke in the class rankings.

* * *

**A/N: **I wish i could've come up with something for day 16 so it would be continuous but such is life. this is much longer than i anticipated and i still didn't know how to end it lol but im hoping to post more for Sasuke's bday, which is still tomorrow for me. Happy birthday to my ultimate king


	17. Chapter 17: Employee Discount

**A/N: **has this been done before? Mall au is so funny to me i don't own anything at all

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day 20: something new

Sasuke rang up the last customer in line and handed them their bag full of merchandise. Working in retail was _exhausting _and he was more than grateful to be on his 30 minute break_. _He wasn't even a good employee and he was so ready to go home.

Customers were really testing his patience that day, especially when Kiba and Naruto came in twice to buy glow in the dark condoms.

"If I tape these to my wall, will it be like those glow in the dark stars we had as kids?"

"Dude, imagine a glow in the dark condom constellation." Kiba handed Naruto the smaller size, taking the larger one for himself, "haha Naruto, you have a Little Dipper."

Even the pre-teens buying rubber bracelets and colorful skinny jeans were more tolerable than those two.

He called out to his co-worker Suigetsu, "I'm on my 30. Don't bother me," before leaving the store in search of a soft pretzel. He didn't know what they put in those pizza pretzels that made them so good—well, he did know, they used cheese and tomato sauce and pepperonis and shit, but still. They were godly.

As usual, Rock Lee was enthusiastically handing out free samples while Neji made the pretzels and TenTen manned the register. Sasuke wrinkled his nose when he saw that the samples were the almond covered bites with caramel sauce. Gross.

He nodded to TenTen for his usual. After he paid and waited for Neji to take the pretzel out of the oven, he noticed the necklace resting on Neji's chest. "Your necklace is sick, dude. Where'd you buy it?"

Neji handed him the pretzel in a bag and pointed behind Sasuke, "Claire's. My cousin works there and they actually have cool stuff. You should check it out. Buy from Hinata, she makes commission."

Sasuke chomped on his pretzel and nodded, not caring if he burned his mouth. They were best fresh. Maybe he needed some new jewelry, his usual look was getting a bit stale. He didn't want to be like Lee: signature or not, that green jumpsuit was awful.

Still munching away, he wandered into Claire's for the first time. He was going to really have to look to find something as cool as what Neji had on, it looked like a unicorn had vomited over half the store. He was sorting through some simple, silver jewelry when the sales associate asked him, "are you finding everything alright?"

He turned around, mouth full of pretzel, ready to answer that he was just looking, but holy shit. It was a super _pretty_ sales associate. He finished chewing and swallowed before answering, "uhh I just wanna do something new. Got any ideas?" As a fellow retail sufferer, he knew it was annoying to actually help customers, but he decided to be a little selfish and bother her for a bit.

To his surprise, she perked up. Little did he know, Sakura actually loved talking to customers. How well did they pay at Claire's? She gestured to the display he had been looking through, "these kinds of simple pieces are really popular with guys lately. But can I make a suggestion?"

He nodded as quickly as he could, eager to hear what she thought.

"You'd look super hot with your ears pierced."

Did that mean he was already hot or the earrings would be a game changer? Either way, getting his ears pierced did sound pretty sick. He heard it didn't even hurt that much. "I'm down. You can do it here, right?"

Sakura pointed to a chair in the corner, "yup, just sit over there and I'll be with you in a second! Choose your studs from the board."

He had decided on a simple silver stud when Sakura came back with the needle gun. Didn't they have one of those in the Hot Topic breakroom?

"Is your hair natural?" he couldn't help but ask while she prepped.

Sakura paused while wiping his ears with disinfectant. She nodded towards him in all his bangs-plus-spiky-hair glory, "I could ask the same to you."

Point taken. He let her continue doing her job. She was even prettier up close. Her name tag said Sakura. That was a nice name. She seemed nice.

He remembered he had more pretzel in the bag and took another bite. His chewing made his ears wiggle up and down, though, so Sakura placed a hand on the side of his face, "hold still. It'll only be a quick pinch." Her hand was warm and soft, Sasuke didn't even notice that the nail gun had pierced his ear. His poor pizza pretzel was completely forgotten now.

Sakura stepped back to admire her handywork. All her soft colors stood out amongst the glaring lights and tacky decor. Sometimes angry moms with awful haircuts came into Hot Topic and accused him of being a devil. Next time he would tell them to go to Claire's, an angel worked there.

He looked at himself in the mirror she handed him. He _did _look kinda cool. Sakura started telling him about how often he needed to clean his ears and how long until he could change to a different pair of earrings.

"Can I get your number?" he blurted. When Sakura simply raised an eyebrow at him, he quickly clarified, "I'm not gonna remember all that. Could you text it to me?"

Sakura laughed and turned around to walk towards the register, "maybe next time. For today I'll let you use my employee discount."

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Sasuke visited Sakura on his breaks from then on. She was way more entertaining than the Hot Topic breakroom or the mall food court. He usually brought her an almond covered pretzel with caramel sauce when he got his pizza one. Her manager, Tsunade, didn't care as long as he brought a lemonade slushy for her too.

"Sakura, you never told me your new boyfriend is an e-boy?"

Sasuke didn't know what an e-boy was, but if E stood for emo he was going to lose it.

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**A/N: **as always i hope my dumb jokes land well or i'll be embarrassed. Happy birthday emo king


	18. Chapter 18: A stitch on my heart

**A/N: **didn't wanna mention any specific article of clothing bc 1. Too lazy to research 2. Narutoverse was changing a lot after the war so who knows what they really wore. In boruto they'll prob wear sneakers or something smh

Lmfao actually if you watch say yes to the dress im hearing all the consultants voices saying "she wants the pnina! Get her the pnina!" those short and see through dresses wouldn't be my first choice, but sakura could wear anything and i'd support her

Also i meant to post this way long ago, like july 23rd so happy birthday sasuke! It passed and it was actually my birthday the 24th but we celebrate all of leo season

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When Sasuke was ready to propose, he made sure he had the perfect ring for Sakura: a platinum band, fit perfectly to her finger, set with a dazzling ruby. Marriage was an important step for him; he knew Sakura would always be by his side, but it was the official start of a new family. The Uchiha clan was going to be doubled with the inclusion of Sakura.

Sasuke was raised quite traditionally, and despite Sakura's claims that they didn't need a ceremony, he wanted to have one anyway. The formality made it feel more real; the rituals helped ground him. He could hardly believe he was lucky enough to marry Sakura, and he needed something to hold on to. Besides, she would look particularly beautiful in her wedding outfit. There was no reason _not _to have the ceremony.

Sakura ran her hand over the smooth garment, admiring the way the Uchiha crest stood out proudly against the dark fabric. It was something she had seen on Sasuke's back when chasing after him for so many years, her girlhood dreams of wearing the same symbol were coming true. The weight of the Uchiha name and crest was not lost on her. Sakura smiled weakly, "I'm sorry Mikoto-san, I'm going to have to borrow this for a while."

Sasuke shook his head in frustration, "Sakura. You are an Uchiha. You might be borrowing the outfit, but the name, the legacy, the values, the clan, you are part of it all and it belongs to you too." The Uchihas were proud people who loved fiercely—Sakura fit right in. Sakura blushed. She was perfectly satisfied with having grown up a Haruno, but she was excited to go through the rest of life with a forever partner and a new clan name.

He admitted it felt a bit strange to wear his father's old clothes, but the fan resting on his back gave him that sense of ownership over the clan. The Uchihas were always all about family and love, things to be shared, not kept hidden.

Sakura thought that besides the clothing, she could borrow a few things out of Mikoto's book. From Sasuke's stories, she learned what a strong, graceful, loving mother and wife she had been. She would've gotten along well with her, that was a fact. Sasuke insisted Fugaku would probably have ended up having a soft spot for Sakura. As the former baby of the clan, he knew what it looked like when Uchihas had a soft spot.

When Sakura became pregnant, it was the first time someone besides Sasuke had sewn the Uchiha fan in a long time. As he watched his wife thread the needle through an impossibly small onesie, ruby ring glinting in the light, Sasuke thought the entire clan would have had a terrible weakness for his future child. The current clan was certainly going to be no match for a new baby.

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**A/N: **yas we love sasuke retsuden yes we do! And did someone say ss month? Thank you to everyone who has read my entries for this month i had fun! Please look forward to future works :*


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